It is known in the art relating to metal cutting to use disposable cutting inserts which are detachably clamped on a holder and discarded when they become dull or chipped. Throw away inserts are usually reversible so that an insert can be provided with at least two cutting ends for selective presentation of the cutting end to the cutting position.
Conventional insert design requires substantial amounts of grinding along the cutting end and insert locating surfaces. In addition to being an expensive part of the insert manufacturing process, the grinding operation does not allow the cutting end to be fabricated with a cutting land having a positive shear cutting angle. With these inserts and their geometry, the pressure against the workpiece during cutting quickly wears out the insert.